


Phantom Limbs

by rainsonata



Category: Elsword (Video Game)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-03-18 10:56:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28616937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainsonata/pseuds/rainsonata
Summary: Mastermind loses the ability to control his dynamo.  Lunatic Psyker is the last person he wants to run into.
Relationships: Edward "Add" Grenore/Edward "Add" Grenore, Lunatic Psyker/Mastermind, Mastermind/Lunatic Psyker
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	Phantom Limbs

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on tumblr.

For the first time in a while, Add woke up to the sun rising. The Mastermind must have slept for half a day at minimum, but why did it it feel like he hadn’t slept at all? His stiff body told him that he had, in fact, slept, but his mind was still alert, as if it had never shut down during his slumber. 

Heavy eyelids made it hard for him to open his eyes when he sat up at his desk. Did he collapse last night in the middle of his research? With a soft sigh, he remained in his seat, staring at the wall ahead of him. What time was it? He was probably hours behind his schedule, which was programmed into his dynamo in case he needed to look at it. Add closed his eyes to concentrate. 

_Dynamos, activate_ , he mentally commanded his weapons to be summoned. 

There was a short pause, a moment of silence in Add’s mind. He opened his eyes again, blinking, before looking around his room with expectation. Where were his dynamo? Add extended one arm out, waiting for the sextuplet weapons to zoom into his room, ready for command by their master. He mentally willed his dynamo to come forth, repeating the thought in his mind again. And again. And again. The tips of his ears turned red as he buried his face in his hands in silent rage. Nothing. 

He then gripped his left wrist, narrowing his eyes in frustration. He forgot. Add wanted to curse into the heavens. His dynamo were not functioning. The dynamo were not damaged physically, but they would not take commands from him. The headband that transmitted his thoughts to the dynamo was malfunctioning, no longer of use. How sad. 

Add had the defective headband in his shaking hands. It would take him days, maybe even weeks, to gather the materials needed to repair it. His dynamo had been damaged before, but never his headband. He was a fool for failing to dodge that one demon attack. Add should have been grateful to avoid any internal or external to his head, but his headband was broken. How could he allow this? It was something that could have been avoided if he was more careful. If he were fast enough. If his dynamos reacted fast enough.

He felt a familiar prickling sensation travel down his arms in response to the negative train of thought. Add clenched his hands, gritting his teeth and failing to hold in short gasps from escaping. His vision went red as pain flashed through his body. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead. He wiped his forehead, ignoring how disgusting it was to have the sweat stick to his palms when he did so. 

_It’s all an illusion_ , Add told himself once again. His imagination. They weren’t his actual limbs. His dynamo weren’t even destroyed, just incapable of responding to signals when Add attempted to command them. They were malfunctioning because of an unfortunate accident in the dungeons, nothing to cry over, A few days of repair and material gathering would suffice. So why was it so painful?

Add stood up, his long bangs covering the upper part of his face. Maybe he should go to the kitchen to grab something. It suddenly became evident that his stomach was empty. He must have been out long enough to be this hungry. 

He sluggishly moved over to the door of his room, relieved that the pain faded as he walked. He bit the bottom of his quivering lips, hand hovering over the door handle with hesitance, eyes staring at the wooden door in fear. Add couldn’t find the nerve to even touch the door knob. What was wrong with him? He shouldn’t feel scared of something as petty as opening a door.

He felt dread at the thought of leaving his room. He would be out in the open with no weapon to defend himself. It was times like these Add regretted connecting all his offensive abilities to his dynamo. He had spare dynamo in case the weapons themselves were wrecked, but never did it occur to him that having a spare headset would be a necessity. It seemed absurd at the time to think about having an extra one. Add didn’t want to make it possible for another person to have access to his weapons if they were to get their hands on the headset. 

Without his dynamo, he had little access to additional artillery. There was Apocalypse, but Add didn’t like the idea of relying on it as a sole means of protection. If someone separated Apocalypse from himself, he would have to fend for himself. 

The usual clarity of his mind was absent. He struggled to keep up with his own thoughts. His thoughts were quick and fleeting, never staying too long on any train of thought before moving to the next. Add tried to piece bits of logic together as poor attempts to persuade himself from panicking. Only a week had passed since his dynamos stopped working and he was in this state of despair. It was pathetic, really. The scientist had gone through physical pain several times worse, yet just losing control over his dynamo was enough to drive him into these long periods of pain and anxiety. 

He jolted when he felt something poking him. Apocalypse whined when it saw its master in distress. The cat cube was careful not to jab Add with one of its corners by accident when it nuzzled him. Apocalypse tried to comfort him with the intelligible noises it made, burying its face into his shoulder. It meowed and floated towards the door, encouraging Add to open it. The cat cube’s cheerful smile turned into a frown when it sensed Add’s reluctance.

Apocalypse cried in surprise when Add leaned his body against the door, grasping on the door handle for support. He groaned because a headache suddenly hit him, a knee jerk response to his fear and anxiety. The headache was mild, not severe enough to make him hold his head. However, it was persistent. If today was anything like yesterday, the headache would linger for a few hours before fading away.

Several minutes passed, but Add still had his head resting against the door. Taking controlled breaths, the adrenaline dissipated from his veins, leaving him exhausted. Apocalypse looked worried, but Add adjusted himself and straightened his back. Apocalypse had brought food to him for the past week or so, but he couldn’t stay here forever. Add let out an audible sigh. If he was to wander around on his own, he should at least go when the rest of the house was asleep or occupied. Now would be a good time to make his move. 

Esper hadn’t been in the house for days, probably attending errands or who knows what the time traver normally did. Lusa should still be in the shower, so there was no reason to see him out and about. There should be enough time for Add to grab some food and go. 

Pondering little else, Add unlocked the door and opened it. 

* * *

The kitchen was less than a minute walk from his room, yet walking there felt longer than it should have. Each footstep dragged, sending Add further into that sense of dread and insecurity. Apocalypse was more than happy when Add chose to stick close to his companion. The cat cube lightly bounced on Add’s back to remind him that it was right behind him. 

When he opened the fridge, he spotted leftover food from what looked like last night’s dinner. He didn’t care about heating it up. Add grabbed the plate of food and turned around to see that Apocalypse was no longer there. 

“Apocalypse?” Add whispered in a hushed tone. 

Add put down the plate of food on the countertop. His eyes darted around the kitchen frantically, desperate to locate his only companion. When he saw that Apocalypse was nowhere in the kitchen, he stepped out to check the living room. His mind froze. He was struggling to piece together what was going on, refusing to accept the fact that Apocalypse was no where to be seen. 

If Apocalypse was gone, that meant he was no longer armed, nothing to use if he was to be attacked. His dynamo was malfunctioning. How was he supposed to repair his headset if he didn’t have the materials he needed? To gather the materials, he would have to go through dungeons to retrieve them. How was he supposed to fight the many monsters and demons occupying the dungeons? 

“I knew you would be here.”

It was Lusa, who was sitting on a stool at the counter when Add returned to the kitchen. How did he get there so quickly when Add wasn’t looking? Floating beside the Lunatic Psyker was Apocalypse, who was making a strange assortment of noises when it saw Add. Apocalypse rushed over to Add and nudged him towards Lusa. 

Startled, Add mentally called out his dynamo at the sight of Lusa. His head ached when he reached out for his dynamo by impulse, heart feeling heavy when he failed to summon them. His mind was already calculating the commands that would have worked if his dynamo weren’t defective. The broken headset was still in his pocket and in no state to be used for anything. 

“What do you want?” Add gave Lusa a wary look. Lusa was the last person he wanted to talk to. 

“Funny,” Lusa snorted. “You’re asking me such a stupid question when I should be the one asking you the questions.” He saw how confused Add was and then said, “You have been gone for a week. Is the coward scared of showing his face?” 

Add flinched. 

“You broke them last week, didn’t you?” Lusa tilt his head to the side. How did he know? He smirked as if he read his mind and said, “Your dynamo could barely line up after that demon attacked you. That’s why you refused to join Esper and me in the dungeons yesterday, right?” 

“I see you’re more than just muscles,” Add tried to keep his voice even. If Lusa knew that Add’s dynamo were broken, then Esper probably figured it out too. He was a fool to think he could hide it from those two. 

“You have the nerve to talk big when you’re defenseless,” Lusa approached him with a tight smile. 

“Stay away from me.”

Lusa ignored him, still walking towards him. Add stepped back, trying to increase the distance between them. Lusa had his dynamo out. Apocalypse was here, but it didn’t react as fast as Lusa’s dynamo. It was clear that Add was at a disadvantage. 

“Tch, you really are useless without your dynamo,” Lusa mocked him when Add shielded his face with his arms. “Take them away and you’re nothing but a man with a big brain.” 

“This man with a big brain can think of multiple ways to kill you,” Add glared at Lusa, who flashed him a toothy grin. 

Add threw a punch at Lusa, but missed. Lusa only had to take a step back to avoid getting hit by Add. The brawler had a smug expression on his face, amused at Add’s pathetic excuse of a punch. It was unfair. Lusa didn’t even have his dynamos positioned for attacking and Add’s muscles were already tense. 

Maybe it was because the Mastermind was foolish, because it wasn’t fear he felt when Lusa positioned his weapons in the air. Instead, Add felt infuriated. Angry. His face heated up with anger, feeling absurdly weak and vulnerable in Lusa’s presence. Add signaled Apocalypse to activate into attack mode, but Lusa grabbed him by the arm before Add could finish the hand gesture command.

“I don’t think so,” Lusa laughed. “I don’t think you could even scratch me if you tried. Maybe if I was half asleep.” 

“Let go of me,” Add snarled. He pulled his arm away from Lusa’s grip, which was surprisingly loose. 

Lusa scoffed, “Shouldn’t you be done repairing your dynamo?” He then asked slyly, “Or is it that you don’t have all the materials?”

 _Shut up_ , Add wanted to shoot down Lusa’s words. Even with Apocalypse, it would be difficult to gather all the materials he needed to repair his headset. It would take teamwork to get what he needed in efficient time. 

He didn’t want to ask Lusa and Esper for help. They would probably laugh at him for losing the ability to control his dynamo. It was easy for them to show no pity, especially when Lusa already relied on his fists to fight and Esper wouldn’t care if their dynamo were broken. Asking them for help would mean admitting that he failed. It would confirm Lusa’s claim that he was useless without his dynamo. Add growled. He wasn’t just weaponless, he was useless. He was _weak_. 

Add waited for more insults from Lusa, but much to his surprise, that was all the brawler had to say. He was expecting Lusa to mock him further, maybe even toy with him in a play fight. Why wasn’t Lusa doing anything beyond having his dynamo out? Was Lusa messing with him? Teasing him and then letting go? Watching his reactions? Letting his fear do the damage? Lusa was more than aware of what anxiety could do to Add. 

“What are you thinking?” Lusa’s question shocked the scientist. 

“Nothing of your concern,” Add lips formed a hard line. He felt Lusa’s eyes on him. They shared the same eyes, yet Lusa’s were so honest, like an open book. It didn’t take much to read Lusa’s emotions. Those weren’t the eyes of hunger and insanity Add was so accustomed to seeing in the battlefield. Those were eyes of sincere concern. It was a foreign expression that shouldn’t have been on Lusa’s face. 

“Liar,” he hissed. “I knew you could keep yourself shut in for a long time, but this is ridiculous,” he rolled his eyes. “You’re lucky Apocalypse came to me again when it was looking for food.” 

Again? Add glanced at Apocalypse in shock. Did this mean…the food Apocalypse had been giving him for the past few weeks was from Lusa? Add thought it was odd that cat cube was able to pick up the food he wanted. Besides coffee, Apocalypse was horrible at telling what was considered edible. It was a hit or miss when it came to food. The stuff Apocalypse brought back was either edible or something else, often a broken dynamo or a something of the like. 

“If it wasn’t for him,” Lusa sighed, “you would be a stick like Esper. Apocalypse found me when you left the room today.”

“I didn’t ask for your help,” Add tried to push away his emotions. He was unsure how to take in this new information. Lusa was worried about him? It was only food, but the gesture was enough to affect him.

“Are you as stupid as you look?” The brawler was frustrated. How much longer was Add planning to stay stubborn? “It’s not just me who’s worried about you. Esper’s been looking for you.” 

“Get to the point,” the scientist jeered at him. “What do you want? Make it quick.”

“I can help fix your dynamo.”

Lusa? Offering to help him? An unusual request. The brawler showed almost no interested in working with A.I., let alone understand the mechanics of it. No, he was more interested in working on strengthening that nasod armor of his. Why did it matter to Lusa that he couldn’t use his dynamo anyway? Sure, he could poke fun at Add for being a sitting duck, but why help him repair it? It’s not like it was a necessity for them to team up together in dungeons. They just simply did so because it was time efficient and saved supplies. Lusa could still team up with Esper. So why bother with Add?

“I don’t need your help,” Add narrowed his eyes. Before Lusa could find a comeback to his statement, Add walked away from him and said, “I don’t need you or Esper’s pity. Good bye.” 

Lusa was too stunned to follow him. 

* * *

Add woke up the next morning in a daze. He fell asleep in his clothes again. Dragging himself to the bathroom, he took a quick shower to wake himself up. The usual pain hardly registered when he brushed his tangled hair. By the time he returned back to his bed, he was still feeling exhausted despite sleeping more than usual. 

He heard Apocalypse meowing at his desk, but he didn’t look to see if the cat cube was still there. Add heard the door open for Apocalypse, allowing it to leave the room. It was probably leaving to find food. The Mastermind closed his eyes. It shouldn’t be hard to fall back to sleep when his room was dark. He tried to force himself back to sleep, but his mind was too active with his thoughts. 

Why did he reject Lusa yesterday? The one time Lusa showed generosity he ignored it. Add’s pride wouldn’t allow him to accept such a thing. He was too proud to admit that he needed help. Too scared to be honest with himself and show any sign of weakness. Maybe he should have accepted the offer and let the brawler help him. His dynamo would have been repaired by now and he wouldn’t be moping in his room.

Add heard his bedroom door open again. He expected Apocalypse to return, so the sound of footsteps made the scientist sit up in confusion. Add made an incohesive noise when he saw Lusa enter his room. Disregarding privacy and all, Lusa dragged him to his feet with an exhausted sigh when he saw that Add was still half sleeping. 

“I locked the door,” Add gawked at Lusa. “How-?”

“Apocalypse let me in.”

Add glared at the cat cube who was the cause of the brute in his room without permission. Apocalypse was floating behind Lusa, blinking at Add with its innocent eyes. Add then checked his alarm clock. 4:57 AM . What was the brawler doing in his room at this hour? The sun wasn’t even up yet. Not even Lusa woke up this early. Lusa should have been asleep.

“What do you want?” The scientist snapped, frustrated that his privacy was lost.

“I couldn’t sleep.”

“That’s the least of my problems,” Add mumbled.

“What I meant to say is…” Lusa said, “that I can’t stand seeing you so fucking useless.”

“Yes, I get it, I’m useless. Now answer my question,” he leered at Lusa. How much further was Lusa planning to drag him down? He was sick of listening to that cocky bastard rubbing the current situation in his face. Add grabbed Lusa by the collar and pulled him in. “Why are you here?” 

“I thought I made it pretty damn clear,” Lusa growled. “We’re fixing that headband of yours so you’ll stop sulking around like a freeloader.” 

Freeloader? The nerve of that meathead to call him by that disgraceful label. He took great pleasure watching Lusa squirm under his hold, who was surprised by the scientist’s strength. Add frowned. Lusa could have easily broken his hold, but instead, he chose to give him a worried look. 

This left Add feeling confused. Lusa still wanted to help him? After rejecting him the first time, Add wasn’t expecting to see him come back. He forgot how persistent Lusa could get if something was within his interests. This was the second time Lusa brought up the topic of fixing that headband. Add let go of the other when he saw Lusa still squirming under his grip. 

Add thought Lusa staring was rudeness, but he when he looked again, he saw that it was a look of concern. Add stared at his own hands. His skin was dry and thin, almost papery. His hair was down, still a tangled mess. He knew he looked tired and worn out.

He had failed to take care of himself. Was that why Lusa kept looking at him as if he were falling apart?

There were scars on Lusa’s bare knuckles when Add stole a glance at them. The marks were faded thanks to the effect of healing potions, but they were still noticeable. They still looked fresh. As strange as it sounded, Add was jealous of Lusa. Even if Lusa was to lose his weapons, he wasn’t completely defenseless because he had his fists to use in a fight. Lusa and Esper must have run dungeons for the past week while Add was figuring out what to do with his defected dynamo. Add wanted to join them. 

“I don’t have all the materials,” Add finally admitted to Lusa. “I can’t fix it.”

“What if I told you I have all the materials you need?”

Add stared at Lusa as the brawler took out what looked like a big backpack. Lusa emptied the backpack, ignoring how the metallic junk rained down the edge of his bed. As if to emphasize, Lusa began spreading out the various pieces, making sure Add could see everything on the bed. Add fought the urge to show disgust when some of the pieces still had oil, which smeared on the white bedspread. The materials were disorganized, but it looked like everything Add needed to complete the repair. 

“How…?” Add started to ask. 

“You can thank Esper for that one,” Lusa shrugged. “I did some of the work, but he’s good at collecting stuff. Surely you know that, huh, Add?” 

Yes, he knew. 

Add looked at the brawler before carefully asking, “What’s the catch?” 

“Nothing.”

“Nothing?” Add echoed back, “How uncharacteristic of you. Don’t bullshit me.” There was no way Lusa would go through all that work and then expect nothing out of it. 

“You’re right,” the brawler’s smirk changed into a serious expression. “Maybe I just want you to stop being so depressed all the time like when mom died. Maybe I just want to fight with you again. Can I tell you how boring it is to watch Esper take out all those monsters in the dungeons? Fun the first time, boring after seeing it so many times. Let me tell you, I miss seeing you beat up shit. Even if you suck at it.”

“Fuck off.”

“Heh,” Lusa chuckled. “It’s like losing your limbs, isn’t it?” He said, “The dynamo were created to get out of that library, but it somehow became an extension of ourselves. Without them, we’re lost.”

Lusa’s words surprised him. They had different philosophies on how to handle their problems, but they were fundamentally the same. Both of them used the same type of weapon and relied on them more than they would prefer to admit. The dynamo weren’t just weapons. They served to input and record data, to learn from their mistakes. Like a second brain, almost. It then occurred to Add that Lusa probably wouldn’t have handled the loss of his dynamo any better than he did. 

“So you said you have all the material, right?” Add asked. The scientist took out a hairband and started tying his long hair into a messy ponytail. He ignored how his bangs fell over one side of his face and said, “I’ll let you help me. Under two conditions.” 

“Oh?”

“One, you can use my lab equipment,” Add began. “But you must keep them clean. Two, we’ll be doing things my way.” There was a short pause. “That means you’ll have to work with the A.I.”

“You know I can’t work with A.I…”

“Then I guess you’ll have to follow me closely then,” Add laughed. “Let’s get started, shall we?”

Add would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy seeing Lusa fume. 


End file.
